The Fire Protection Research Foundation will be examining three main area of cooking-related fires, and developing an action plan towards improving overall cooking fire safety – thanks to a grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Cooking equipment-related fires are the leading cause of U.S. fire loss, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). During the five-year-period of 2006-2010, cooking equipment was involved in an average of 157,300 reported home structure fires, with associated losses of 380 civilian deaths, 4,920 civilian injuries and $794 million in direct property damage per year.

The Foundation, an affiliate of NFPA, will work on the research project through the remainder of 2012 and throughout 2013. Development of Standard Cooking Fire Scenarios and Candidate Test Methods for Evaluating Cooking Fire Mitigation Technologies will focus on implementing prevention technologies that are suitable for use on or with home cooking appliances. The three categories of cooking-related fires to be studied are: fires starting in a pot or pan on a burner; fires due to food spillage onto a burner; and products such as utensils, oven mitts and other items that catch fire on or near a burner.

Since the 1980s, NIST, the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and the home appliance industry have undertaken a series of comprehensive strategy reviews to reduce the number of deaths, injuries and property losses from cooking fires.

The grant-funded research project report is slated for completion by the end of 2013, and will be made available through the Foundation’s website.

The Fire Protection Research Foundation plans, manages, and communicates research on a broad range of fire safety issues in collaboration with scientists and laboratories around the world.